2nd of two at the Philly Civic, the night before the beloved Roosevelt, NJ '74 show and just a couple shows away from the late-'74 classic, 9/11-Ally Pally. Half of this show is on
Dick's #31 though it unfortunately leaves behind half of the nugs (and it would be nice to have this whole show in better qual). This show is probably mostly known for the
China>Rider but there's a bit more going on (some of which didn't make it to Dick's 31). It's a show of extreme ups and downs and the first weird thing is that eight songs are repeats from the night before, at the same venue, and that's not counting
Space! (Its not uncommon in'74 to have a few repeats but not, like, '69-style repeats: in two nights/one venue).
The First Set starts with a strong
Promised Land. Jer fires all the damn way through (making it the more bizarre when he stops playing a few songs later) until Keith's measures, then he almost stops - smiling at Keith and enjoying himself? At the end Jer pushes, explores. He then tries to start Sugaree but nobody bites and Bobby is talking to the crowd, then Phil teases somebody (wtf)?
Brown Eyed Women is in a perfect '74 version, where Jer plays little during the verses, leaving it to Keith and Bobby. Jer is amazing in
Beat it on Down-9, going all out in an A+ version. The playing against Keith is jaw-dropppping, Jer kickin' it low and then going to the opposite frets for the next verse. Then,
Dire Wolf is such an epic disaster, Jer bails after a measure of the solo, jumping into the refrain and then stops playing. The band wasn't together from the start. This didn't happen in just '93-'95 (& think how often this would happen to most bands that tried a format like the Dead's)!
Tennessee, gets on the wrong foot; can't be salvaged.
Jack Straw is valiant - but just a bit too slopped. Things improve after a decent
Deal on their way to the much-remarked
China>Rider set peak. It's not that it's the best of '74 as much as the way the band grooves and slips around, sloppy one stanza and brilliant the next. Billy stands out on this one (easier, sans Mickey). It's entertaining either way (
Rider's where the fun lays but you just don't isolate it now do ya). A stylized
Around is then like an encore for the first set.
Second Set opener
Mississippi 1/2 is a prime example of one of the tricks the Dead would play: simultaneously sloppy/on the edge of disaster, combined with a unique, risky version that, after 2 1/2 minutes, still fascinates. It could make you feel like you rode the risk with them and now, safely on the
o t h e r s i d e, feel outwardly congratulatory. The middle of the set is not as good as the same songs from the night before.
Scarlet has Jer trying to play off an early Donna wail but is below-average for '74.
He's Gone is sloppy as hell but Jer injects wild lines @4 minutes and Phil joins the end chorus after which it takes several minutes to follows Jer's teases and dissolve into one of the best
Truckin's of '74 (over 20 minutes long, including the afterjam).
Space is mostly several individuals attempting jazz. I imagine some like this side of the band (too Spinal Tap at the amusement park).
Stella is again teetering but, with a couple minutes of the emoting Garcia, effected merely via note choice and inflection. '74 is maybe the best Stella year. Jer and Bobby are in synch in a tight
Saturday Night marred only by Donna's outré contributions. Jer is unusually active while delivering the verse for
US Blues; unless that's a guest? Good year for that tune, too.
1st Set: C+
2nd Set: B-
Overall: 3 Stars (bombs levied by equal amount of gems)
Highlights:
BEW
BioDtL
(China>)Rider
Around & Around
Truckin'
Stella
One More Saturday
US Blues
and maybe Promised Land
SOURCES:
I once had a too-low gen of this one but the SBD that circulates isn't of the highest qual anyway, though it does fill the gaps missing in Dick's 31. I have the Sacks which
runs 1% fast, is hissy, and out-of-balance in places (with a deadicated machine w/pro soundcard, etc. I applied noise reduction, and normalized volume/balance at -1% speed before reviewing with great results); maybe the JRFishman SBD is better? There's another decent Jerry Moore AUD of this as well (
weiner.21294).